Clint Fleckenstein
1
COW Coin
Forum Replies Created
-
“But all the crew wants to know is how many bites per minute the lunch break is.”
If the quantity of free pizza and the voracity quotient of the crew are known constants, then I think a pretty easy formula could be constructed. Don’t forget to factor in whether they’re getting Dew or Red Bull.
Cf
-
Care to buy me a lottery ticket? 🙂
Cf
-
I just got done keying several dozen clips shot in a cramped office with a portable blue screen and minimal lighting. They’re all turning out fantastic. Don’t be disheartened if you don’t get the results you want right away.
First off, since you’re in After Effects, it’s important that you use the Keylight keyer that was included with AE. If you don’t have that effect installed, install it from your original discs.
Second, don’t be afraid to hit the “reset” button on your key settings and start from scratch. Sometimes you just need to wipe the slate clean and take a new approach.
Third, don’t expect magic. Sometimes there will be areas that simply will NOT key properly and will have to be done with a mask. Other times you will use the eyedropper to select your background color and instantly have a key that’s almost finished quality.
In Keylight, one quick and dirty way to get close to where you want your key is to clip the matte black as high as you can, the white as low as you can, then pre-blur and soften your matte edges just a hair so they don’t look unnaturally hard. This will take out the garbage noise in your background area, yet fill out the area you want to remain keyed. From there you’re basically refining the edge.
I came to XDCAM EX from keying DV footage, so working with EX green screen footage is like being a kid in a candy store by comparison!
Cf
-
“Things like people lifting the tripod by the camera handle and busting the bottom plate off. These are NOT cameras that can take a hit. The shoulder rest bends easily and my battery release compartment took a hit and broke the release mechanism.”
When I left television (with its bulky, but durable ENG gear) and came to my current job shooting on Canon XL series cameras, that was the hardest thing to get used to: the durability just isn’t there. I found myself constantly tip-toeing around fragile connectors and plastic parts!
Being a bit of the “careful” sort, I find it frustrating when someone brings back the camera and “dunno why it won’t stay on the tripod”. Then I spend the day fabricating aluminum to replace torn-out tripod mount threads so the camera can fly out of state in two days! Granted, I like being paid to play with metal in my garage…but durable gear would be fantastic, too.
I consider the EX-1 and EX-3 (we have both) to be a pro cam in a prosumer chassis. I’m friends with the chief news videographer at the dominant local TV station, and he’s been using an EX-1 for ENG. It just isn’t what he’s used to for durability, ability to operate with gloves, and that sort of thing. Granted, it doesn’t cost $30k. No complaint about the price, so I suppose we waive the right to complain on the rest 🙂
For the person who’s more meticulous in the care of their equipment, I find the EX series fantastic. I wouldn’t mind being able to flash firmware upgrades myself, especially being in the geographical center of North America; that, combined with North Dakota’s rural configuration, make us several UPS days from everywhere!
Cf
-
Technically speaking, it’s how much hard drive, not how much memory. You need to bear in mind that you’re going to need room for the raw camera files in their respective BPAV folders, plus room for the exported clips (MXF or MOV). I’d agree with Don’s ballpark number of 15Gb/hour.
Cf
-
I believe there was a recent firmware update for that machine. Lots of us with PDW-U1 drives are waiting for our turn.
Cf
-
I agree: this is a teachable moment. In my experience, kids coming out of school these days have little, if any, useful workflow skills. This is an excellent challenge for them, one they’ll grow to appreciate if they stay in the business. It’s also a good illustration about why they should follow your instructions! 🙂
I’m not saying you should hang them out to dry, but if they’re unable to find a solution without you helping them a long a little, maybe you can demonstrate how useful the online community is in finding a solution. There are thousands of helpful professionals online who are generous with their time and knowledge to help a person in need. You could tell them to search online for the solution, or just show them how you came to the COW to find an answer.
Cf
-
Do you by chance have your playback quality set to Dynamic? Just a shot in the dark here.
Cf
-
It really is a mindset issue. Think of that BPAV folder as a tape, pure and simple. The benefit of this “tape” is that you don’t have to have a certain model/format of “deck” to play it back or “dub” it to a format needed for delivery. Instead of renting a Digitbeta deck to play back the footage you shot or transfer to DVCPRO HD, for instance, you just load the XDCAM Transfer app and rewrap your BPAV folder’s files to what you, your editor, or your client require.
There was a long thread a while back from a guy who was given files made from someone’s BPAV folder in a format he couldn’t use (I forget which it was, MOV or MXF). If the person providing the raw footage trashed the raw camera files after exporting, they’re in trouble. If they archived them properly, they can simply export the clips in the format required for edit.
Suppose a magical third flavor besides MOV or MXF comes out someday, one that becomes the preferred edit standard…Sony needs only to update its XDCAM Transfer app, and EX users with properly archived BPAV folders will be able to use it to rewrap their camera raw files to that format as well. I’m probably oversimplifying, but I want to illustrate that keeping the raw camera files is the best way to prepare for unexpected developments.
Another loose comparison might be made to still cameras. Do you throw away your digital camera’s RAW files after converting to TIFF or JPEG? Heck, no. In that case, of course, there’s an additional image processing factor to consider, but the general idea is the flexibility you get from keeping the files generated by the camera.
It’s easy to fall into the trap of throwing one’s tape-based habits in the trash bin once those shiny new cards show up, but I think that proper archiving and housekeeping habits can translate across the board, whether shooting film, card, or tape.
Cf
-
One thing about a RAID is that it’s hard to put in a fire safe. Perhaps it’s part of my tape-based upbringing, or my collector mentality, but I need something physical to lock away in case Milton sets the building on fire after I take his Swingline stapler 🙂 That’s why the XDCAM disc method is so appealing (once Sony’s firmware update comes). I have space ready next to our tape library in our gigantic fire safe.
Cf